Anime Comes To Life With Tourism AR

Pilgrimages — visits to locations replicated in anime — are all the rage among fans who can fund them. It’s fun to see familiar places and learn about new locations, and more importantly, it’s a great excuse to cosplay!

Nowadays, creators are spicing up pilgrimages through the magic of augmented reality:

Butai Meguri: Hang With The Cast

(Source: butaimeguri.com)

Anime/travel app Butai Meguri makes sightseeing double the fun. Thanks to collaborations with anime studios, visitors can snap photos of famous anime spots with cameos by the stars!

Grab photos with the cast of True Tears, Yowamushi Pedal,Lucky Star, and lots more. They even run special anniversary campaigns for classic shows… so you might see an old favorite pop up!

Lay out the perfect photo, then share the shot. Butai Meguri also adds new collaborations all the time — giving you lots of chances to explore new places and discover new titles.

Tokyo Anime Tourism: See The Sights

The company mixes AR gaming with hit anime titles, and uses it to create digital “stamp rallies”. All you have to do is find specific points in Tokyo, check in (within 30m of the hot spot), and collect points!

For their Sword Art Online campaign, the app lets you meet Kirito, Asuna, and other popular characters around town. Complete missions and see special parts of Tokyo, and you can pick up cool prizes like pins and clear files. And depending on when you play, you might also see some “rare” characters show up!

The combination of augmented reality and fandom is making sightseeing more fun than ever. From family “Pokéwalks” with Pokémon GO to anime pilgrimages, there’s more reason than ever to get out and explore!

What anime’s setting would you like to visit? Let us know in the comments!